Faithful

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’ “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’ ” And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1-8 NIV)

In some ways, this is a bit of an odd story when we think of the meaning Jesus gives to it. 

First, the judge - he doesn’t fear God, he doesn’t care what people think. He’s his own man who does his own thing, seemingly without compassion or love. He doesn’t see himself as under another’s authority, but chooses to do his own thing.

Second, the widow - she seems like a nag, or perhaps just desperate. Constantly coming back to him time after time to beg and plead her case. 

Third, the way the unjust judge finally seems to cave because he gets tired of listening to her pleas.  It’s not because of mercy or compassion or even justice that this judge relents, but because he’s tired of this woman’s incessant visits.

So, this seems like an odd story… however:

It is striking, however, that the widow continues to come to the one place where she is able (and should be able) to get justice. She doesn’t try to go elsewhere to manufacture something on her own, but continues to come to the one who can actually bring help for her - the RIGHT way!

For the judge, we see that God sets himself up not as the same as this other judge, but as one who is so much better. While the judge in the story is not concerned with justice, God is just. While the judge in the story really doesn’t care about people and is quite happy to put them off, God loves his children and longs for them to be free!

The question raised by the parable is a question of perseverance - will God’s people continue to come to him, the one who can bring healing and freedom? Will God’s people bring their cause, their hurts, their struggles to the only one who can actually deal with it, or will they give up and go their own way to try to solve their problems?

It is easy to find fault in God - he doesn’t answer when we pray. He doesn’t seem to be listening and so we decide it’s not worth our time to carry on asking for something. Rather than persevere, we give up. Rather than continue to petition the one who can actually make a difference, we try all kinds of other things to see if that will do the trick and bring about our desired result right now.

The challenge Jesus raises at the end of the parable is a real challenge to me - while God is one who longs for what’s best for his kids, the question is whether Jesus will find faith on earth when he returns. Will I (we) be shown to be the ones continuing to bring our cause before him?

Too often, I find myself as one who too easily gives up in prayer and either tries to find another way or gives it up completely. When it comes to praying for healing, it can be easy to assume that God just isn’t going to bring about healing right away because someone isn’t healed at the first or second time I pray. When relationships aren’t restored right away, I can give up hope because it doesn’t seem like God is doing anything. When people don’t come to accept Jesus as their Saviour and Lord after I pray for them, it’s easy to lose hope that God can change their lives.

And yet, I know that persevering in prayer is something that impacts not only those people or things we pray for, but also impact and shape us! When we can persevere in prayer, it grows our trust in God and shapes our relationship with him. 

Whether we’re called to persevere in prayer for a few months or many years, I wonder if we’ll accept the challenge and call to see it through. To continue to come to our loving father, the one who can transform lives and circumstances, to finally see what he will do!